


Permanent Changes

by JustAnotherSailorScout



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Alternate Universe - Tattoos, Bisexual Rey (Star Wars), Car Accidents, Eventual Smut, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Loneliness, M/M, Past Child Abuse, Slowish burn?, Soulmate-Identifying Marks, Soulmates, Sunflowers, The Soulmate/Tattoo AU that nobody asked for, but here it is anyway
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-05-20
Updated: 2019-01-27
Packaged: 2019-05-09 13:41:48
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 9,438
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14717153
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JustAnotherSailorScout/pseuds/JustAnotherSailorScout
Summary: Fate had not been the kindest to Rey growing up. So she had decided to write her own story. Sometimes she decided to be a little reckless, just for fun. So on her birthday she got a tattoo. It was supposed to be one simple sunflower tattoo. That was all. There were never supposed to be any major consequences of that decision. But, as it turns out, fate may just be a little bit kinder to her than she thought.Soulmate/Tattoo AU where once a permanent change is made to the skin, that same marking appears on your soulmate as well.





	1. Discovery

**Author's Note:**

> It started innocently enough. On Rey’s 22nd birthday, she marched into a tattoo parlor to get her first tattoo. All she had wanted on her body was a simple sunflower to represent her late grandmother, Satine, but it seemed that fate had other plans.

......

That last clap of thunder was what woke him. Jarred him from some terrible nightmare where he was alone. Always alone. His chocolate lab, Hershey, was there snuggled up next to him, breathing steadily. Rubbing his eyes with the heels of his hands, he tried to get his eyes to focus, when he noticed something. 

Why, in God’s name, was there a flower on his wrist? He didn’t remember going and getting a tattoo. Did he really drink that much last night? Surely Hux wouldn’t have let him go get a _tattoo._ There was no scaring or anything. It was just _there._ Panicking, he decided to call him.

“Solo, it is 6:00 am in the morning. It’s a Saturday. What the fuck could you possibly want?” Hux’s voice was thick with sleep, and he sounded more annoyed than usual, if that was even possible.

“Did I get a tattoo last night?”

“Did you…did you _what?_ ”

“Did I get a tattoo last night?” he asked as serious as ever.

“Of course not. We had a few drinks after work, and then we all went home at 1:00.”

“Um. Alright then. Then why in the world did I wake up with a fucking flower on my wrist then?”

In the background, Ben could hear Phasma gasping “HE HAS A SOULMATE!”

Wait…..Hux and Phasma??? Fuck it. He would deal with _that_ later. This was not the time.  
“I…I, what? Hux just put me on speaker. I know Christine is there.” At that, he could hear her more clearly now. “You have a soulmate! They are extremely rare, so it’s not super common knowledge anymore. Basically, if your soulmate has any permanent changes to their skin, say, a scar, or a tattoo, then it will appear on you as well.”

Ben’s head was spinning. A soulmate. For him. 

He’d never really given much serious thought to dating. Sure, he’d had a series of meaningless one-night stands, but that’s all they were, meaningless. This means that there is someone out there who could actually love him. He wasn’t even sure he family did.

“Ben?”

He was jolted back to reality. “I…I need to go.” And he hung up the phone.

Well, fuck, he wasn’t going back to sleep now. Groaning, he threw his covers off and stumbled to the bathroom. Turning the shower on as hot as his skin could possibly bear, Ben started to become dizzy. A soulmate. The room started spinning much so that he sat down in the shower and just let the water fall on his body. He’d never been one to really examine himself before, but as Ben looked at the tattoo on his wrist he became aware of many little white scars all over his body. Several on his hands. Some on his thighs. He felt his stomach drop. His soulmate. His person. Why were there so many scars? What happened?

Ben felt the water eventually grow cold as he was lost in his own thoughts. He shut the water off but sat in the tub for a while longer. He needed to send some sort of message. Just something. 

Before he realized what was really happening, Ben had someone ended up in front of his uncle’s tattoo parlor. He must have just been on autopilot. Luke’s tattoo shop was 3 subway stops away from his apartment, and he hadn’t been there in years. But it seemed that that was where he needed to go. It was still pouring rain but that didn’t seem to matter anymore. Steeling himself, he opened the door.

“We’re not open yet, come back in a few hours,” he heard Luke shout from the back room. 

“Even for family?” 

With that, he heard Luke stop doing whatever it was he was doing and walk into the main room of the shop. 

“What are you doing here?” Not exactly the greeting he was hoping for, but honestly he shouldn’t have expected better. Without speaking, Ben showed Luke the flower tattoo. 

“Ben, I’m not going to cover up some weird drunken mistake you had just because I’m your un…” 

“Luke,” he interrupted, “do you really think I would have gotten something like this? I woke up this morning, and it was just _there._ Like it’s been there for years.” 

With that, Luke’s blue eyes were full of understanding. 

“How do you plan on finding her?” 

“I’m...not sure. I just need to send a message. Something. I just want her to know that...well...I’m here.” 

About an hour later, Ben Solo walked out of his uncle’s tattoo parlor with a fresh tattoo on the inside of his forearm. The realization that she would have the same marking on her skin now was slightly overwhelming, but for once he felt at peace. 

\----  
That evening, Rey was dancing around her kitchen in her fuzzy socks and oversized Harry Potter t-shirt, listening to old Panic! At the Disco songs, drinking boxed merlot and making macaroni and cheese when she noticed it. The inside of her forearm. Rey was so shocked she dropped her wine, glass shattering on the floor and red liquid spilling everywhere. But that didn’t matter. The only thing Rey could pay attention to was the words that were written on her arm. 

_You are not alone_


	2. Disbelief

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WOW!!!!!! I was COMPLETELY blown away by y'alls support for this fic after only one chapter!!! Your comments were 100% my fuel to write the second chapter despite having worked nearly 60 hours this week. Thank you SO much!!!!!!! I hope you enjoy chapter 2 just as much! It's not quite as long as I had hoped, but I REALLY wanted to get something out for you all today!!!!

When Rey was 5, she was left at the doorstep of Ben and Satine Kenobi. Her parents had decided that she was too much of a burden, and that their fix was more important. That night, she sat on their doorstep. “We’ll be back sweetheart. Just wait right here.” Satine was the first one to notice her. It was 3 am, and nearly freezing. Without question, the Kenobis took her in. Satine even redecorated the guest room just for Rey. The first night that Rey had slept in that room, Satine brought her a bouquet of sunflowers, because she was “their little ray of sunshine.” 

At 10, there was an accident. Satine didn’t make it to the hospital. Ben was in a coma, and he wasn’t waking up. Rey was put into foster care. 

At 12, she kept her door locked at night. Afraid of the man that supposed to take care of her. Afraid that he would hit her, scream at her, force her to miss school again to work in the scrap yard. 

At 19, she finally got the courage to run away. She was accepted at a university in New York, with scholarship, and lived in an apartment off campus. The first thing she did before she unpacked was purchase a bouquet of sunflowers for her apartment. 

And now, at 22, she sat on her kitchen floor, staring at her arm. 

_You are not alone._

Those were the words that stared back at her. _What in the world?_ She only got the one tattoo. One sunflower tattoo. Right? Right???? Alright. Okay. Deep breath. There HAD to be an explanation for this. At this point Rey realized she was sitting on the floor with the broken glass and the spilled wine. Her favorite socks now had a red stain all over them, and if she wasn’t careful she’d definitely be picking out glass shards from her skin. Slowly standing up, Rey made her way to the bedroom, grabbing the pot of mac  & cheese and a spoon, leaving the spill to clean up later. 

She sat on her bed, gobbling down her dinner while contemplating. Fuck it. She wasn’t going to find answers without asking. So, she grabbed her phone and started searching.

“Random Tattoo Appearing” 

To Rey’s surprise, there seemed to actually be a few answers to her questions.  
_I suppose you should never doubt the power of the internet, she thought._

The first link she clicked on was a forum from a few years ago. The person that made the post seemed to have had the same thing happen to him. One day, he was sitting in the library at his university when a tattoo of a semicolon appeared on his wrist. The answers all were the same. 

“You have a soulmate!” 

“I guess your soulmate got a tattoo.” 

“Oh my gosh! You have a soulmate! That’s soooooooooo lucky!!!!” 

“Soulmate!!!”

_Soulmate, soulmate, soulmate, soulmate_

Rey clicked on a few more articles. They all said the same thing. Soulmate. 

She has a soulmate. 

In a panic, she threw her phone across the room. Her heart started beating faster, and her airway constricted. Without thinking, Rey stripped off her clothes and headed to the bathroom. She turned off the lights and started filling up the tub. Alone. In the dark. Just her and the water. This was where she did most of her productive thinking 

A soulmate. That word just kept swimming around in her head. Surely not. There must be some mistake. Everyone she ever loved always leaves her. There was no way that she could be guaranteed happiness. She sat there for a few more minutes contemplating nothing and everything at the same time.  
Rey suddenly felt a spark of curiosity, if only to distract her from her thoughts. She dried off and went to retrieve her phone. 

“Semi-colon tattoo meaning” 

Welp. That was a bad idea. 

“The semicolon tattoo meaning: It states that the optional semicolon continues a sentence rather than ending one like an abrupt period.  
Therefore, each human being is the author that chooses to keep the sentence (life) going on. Many individuals struggling with depression, self-harm and other ailments can embrace the semicolon.” 

So that meant. That person. His soulmate had wanted to take their life. What if they have never met??? Holy shit, how was she supposed to FIND her soulmate??? Stop panicking. Deep breath. 

In an effort to calm herself, Rey picked up the pot of mac and cheese. She took it back to the kitchen where she had dropped her wine and cleaned the spill furiously. Scrubbing the floor until it sparkled, and then some. 

Finally exhausted, Rey made her way back to her bedroom and collapsed onto her bed. 

The next morning, Rey got up earlier than she really wanted on a Sunday to go the new yoga studio that Rose had invited her too. Yoga was not really her thing, per se, but Rose was really excited, and Rey felt like she needed a distraction. 

That, obviously, did not last long when Rose saw Rey’s new tattoo.  
“Wait. I thought you only got the sunflower tattoo?”

“I did.” 

“Then…” realization dawned on her face, “OH MY GOD REY! Do you know what this MEANS?!” 

“I didn’t at first,” Rey said shyly, “but after looking it up, I think it means I have a soulmate?” Honestly, she was still unsure of everything herself, but maybe Rose would have a better idea. 

“YES! I can’t believe it! I’ve never met someone with a soulmate before! This is incredible! I am so HAPPY for you!” 

Of course Rose would be ecstatic. And by all accounts Rey should be too. But mostly she was just nervous. This was, obviously, going to change her life. But no major event in her life so far, that wasn’t of her own doing, turned out well. Maybe this would, but she didn’t want to get her hopes up, only to be disappointed again. What if they didn’t like her? What if she had too much baggage? What….what if she didn’t like _them_? There were SO many things that could go wrong. And on top of that, how were they even going to find each other? 

“Rey. Hey. Rey.” Rose snapped her fingers in her face. “I know that look on your face. You’re thinking of all the ways it could go wrong. But honey. Think of all the ways it could go RIGHT. I’ve never heard of soulmates not falling head over heels in love with each other. You’re going to get your happy ending. Just trust. Meanwhile. Let’s skip out on yoga and go get celebratory brunch!!!!!! I’ll call Finn and Poe!” 

Rose took Rey in arm and led her to their favorite Irish pub for brunch. The entire walk there Rose couldn’t stop talking about the events of the past day. Rey’s head kept churning. She didn’t quite want to figure out how to meet her soulmate just yet. But maybe, maybe they should know a little bit about her. With that decided, she started planning out her next tattoo. She would go on Friday.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As for the semicolon tattoo, the excerpt came from www.semicolontattoo.com, I have one myself actually, to support my husband :)


	3. Apprehension

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I AM SO SORRY FOR THE WAIT!!!!!!!!!! My husband and I are moving nearly 400 miles away for him to attend law school this fall so things have just been INSANELY busy. But you all have been just so incredibly kind I wanted to get SOMETHING out here for you guys. Your comments legitimately make my whole day. I hope this chapter doesn't disappoint!

The rest of the week went on as normal with no new tattoos. Ben was almost disappointed. The week was...bland to be perfectly honest. Snoke was overworking him with over 14 hour days at the publishing company every day. Everything was a blur as he repeated the same routine day in day out. 

Until Friday night. 

Friday night Ben was taking his clothes off to collapse into bed when he saw it. 5 gears of different sizes, trailing up his forearm. So maybe his soulmate was a mechanic, or even an engineer maybe? He was just so happy to hear from her that felt tears prick in the back of his eyes, threatening to spill over. Hershey could sense the change in his mood and came over to snuggle up next to him. 

That night he dreamt of a poor abandoned girl, forced to struggle through life until she was swept away on a grand adventure, running from soldiers dressed in bizarre looking white armor. 

Saturday morning Ben reluctantly walked into Maz’s Palace, the diner just down the street from his apartment, but the one that he avoided because Maz was the type of person to straight through him. 

He walked through the door and the bell chimed. 

“BEN SOLO!!!” 

“Hey Maz,” he said sheepishly. 

She took one look at his arms, and started chuckling. “Oh man. You’ve really gotten yourself into trouble this time” 

Ben looked at the ground. He was lost in his own world. Before he had realized it, Maz had sat him down in a booth, and produced a grilled cheese sandwich, tomato soup, and a cherry coke in front of him. He swore she was magic. Just as he was about to take a bite of the soup, he noticed that there was a new marking. The Deathly Hallows symbol was now on the inside of his right bicep. Fuck. She was perfect. 

“Maz, what the fuck am I supposed to do? I don’t even know how to meet her! All I even know about her is that she likes sunflowers, she’s most likely either a mechanic or an engineer, and she apparently likes Harry Potter! Hell! I don’t even know if my soulmate is a girl!” He was breathing hard now. The gravity of what exactly was happening finally catching up to him. 

She put her hand on his. “Ben. I may not have a soulmate, but I know the universe. You will find them eventually. You two are marked for destiny. You just need to take a deep breath and learn to accept this gift that the universe has given you.” 

His head hurt. But dammit he needed to communicate with her now. He tried to pay Maz for the food but of course she refused. Not wanting to cause any trouble he politely left, leaving a generous amount of cash in the tip jar, and headed to Luke’s. 

Luke was not at all surprised that Ben was on his doorstep again. He just gestured for him to come in and sit in the chair and then started inspecting his new markings. Luke gave him a half smile. “Do you mind if I give you two?” Ben nodded, still not quite all there. His uncle immediately went to his sketch pad. In about 30 minutes he came to Ben with two new drawings. One was of a calligraphy pen that would run along his left forearm, and the other was The White Tree of Gondor that would be placed on the inside of his left bicep. Both presumably to reciprocate that ones she gave him. Luke knew him almost too well it seemed. 

His uncle made him some tea to calm his clearly stressed out nephew and then set to work. He was done in just over an hour and Ben looked down at his arm. It was perfect. All of the markings on his skin displaying the story of two perfect strangers apparently destined for each other. 

Ben left the shop in a daze. This entire soulmate thing was too much. Too many feelings. Ben was always one to feel too much, so in almost every situation he approached the problem with as much apathy as he could muster. Better to just not have any feelings involved ever. And now. Now. 

Now there was person out their created for him. And he had the markings to show for it. Soulmates were incredibly rare. So rare that he had honestly forgotten about them until Phasma pointed it out to him. Who were they? What was their name? Why did they have so many scars on their hands? Would he ever get to meet them? The idea of not was eating at him. 

So lost in thought was Ben Solo that he didn't see the car that was careening around the corner until it was too late. 

\---   
That day, Rey was out for a run. She stopped to take a breather and saw the calligraphy pen running down forearm and a Lord of the Rings tattoo on her bicep. She smiled. Maybe. Maybe she was finally ready to meet them. When she got home to shower off she caught her reflection in the bathroom mirror. Rey stopped dead in her tracks. 

A faint, thin white line bisected her face and trailed down to her shoulder. 

Her stomach dropped.

Something must have happened.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't hate me okay??? It's all going to work out I PROMISE! Meanwhile, if you're interested I've been listening to City and Colour's "Little Hell" album when I work on this fic! It's definitely going to be the vibe in later chapters :)


	4. Arrival

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> YOU GUYS! I know I've said this before, but I cannot explain to you how grateful I am at your response to this fic. I'm completely blown away by it. @rileybabe made this INCREDIBLE moodboard which had me almost screaming at work. She captured the feel of the story perfectly, and I'm so excited to share it with you all 
> 
>  

Rey had no idea how to handle this situation. She couldn’t call every hospital, well, conceivably, in the world just to find a lightly tattooed person with a gash on their face. I mean...she COULD...no. No that wouldn’t work. God, if only she hadn’t been so caught up in all of that symbolism bullshit and just fucking tattooed her cellphone number on her arm she probably would have been able to contact them. Her chest started constricting. They were out there. Injured. And the only way she’d be able to get a message to them was by permanently inking her skin. Fuck. 

Fuck fuck fuck. 

Okay. Panicking was going to accomplish absolutely nothing. She still needed to shower. Yea. Let’s start with that. As she undressed she caught sight of her the new tattoos on her left arm. Her soulmate’s arm, she’d started to call it. They are seemingly each stuck to one arm. Maybe someday they could design a joint piece. And that would never happen if she didn’t find them. 

In a haste, Rey stripped off her clothes, and got into the hot shower while she tried to formulate a plan. So first things first she needed to call Rose. Yes. That would be a start. Her sister Paige was the one creating all of her tattoos anyway, maybe the three of them could think of something that would get a message across but still look okay? Whatever. It didn’t even matter what it looked like as long as she found her soulmate. It was almost animalistic, the possession she felt over them without even knowing them. Them? Him? Her? Rey honestly did not care at all. Once Rey was done with her shower she carefully patted her new tattoos dry, and then hurriedly toweled off the rest of her. Picking up her cellphone she dialed Rose’s number.

“Hello!” she was chipper as ever it seemed. 

“Rose..” Rey had no idea that she was crying until just now. 

“Rey. Hey, hey, what happened? Are you alright? Are you hurt?” 

“That’s just it,” she sobbed, “I’m fine. But I don’t think…..I don’t think they are.” The tears were flowing now, and she couldn’t stop them.

“Are you at your apartment?” 

“Mmhmm”

“Okay, stay right there. I’m coming over.” 

Within 30 minutes Rose showed up on Rey’s doorstep with wine, cookie dough, and a movie. She didn’t even say anything as she let herself in. But she took one look at Rey and wrapped her in the biggest hug her tiny frame could muster. Rose eyed her up and down. Two new tattoos, one new scar. Something was up. 

“We’re going to find them. We’ll do whatever it takes,” Rose promised.

Rey just smiled. They had been friends ever since Rey walked into her first college physics class at 19 years old. To be perfectly honest, Rey originally sat next to her because Rose was one of the only other girls in the class, but that quickly turned into a fantastic friendship.

“Okay, so I have a few thoughts.” 

“Oh really?” Rey smirked. 

“Yes! Okay, so this is a soulmate thing, right? Like, you’re literally destined for each other. Wouldn’t the universe put you in similar places?” 

“I mean, maybe? But I grew up in London…” 

“I know I know, but you MOVED to New York! Maybe that was the universe trying to, I don’t know, bring you closer together or something! I mean, we have literally nothing else to go on. So let’s go talk to Paige first. She did your tattoos in the first place. We can see if she can find out if any other tattoo artist in the area has given out the ones your soulmate has!” 

Paige worked as an artist in a tattoo shop in the city. Being Rose’s friend, Paige was incredibly generous in the pricing she gave Rey. She even acquiesced to her coming in Friday night for the gear tattoo, and back the next morning for the Deathly Hallows. 

The girls decided to run down to the parlor where Paige rents a booth. As the pair exited the subway, Rey started to get a little jittery. She could almost FEEL that they were going to make progress in connecting her to her soulmate, and that terrified her to her core.

“Hey you two! Rey, have you come back for another tattoo?” 

At this point Rey was just speechless, with the entire afternoon weighing on her. She just stood there.

Rose, quickly came to her rescue. “Paige, LOOK at her.” 

“Oh shit, Rey.” Paige paused, a thought seemed to have struck her. “Okay. I have an idea!” 

After quickly examining Rey and her new tattoos and scars, Paige started crafting a social media post (figuring she would reach more people than Rey’s 120 followers on Instagram). Paige took pictures of all the tattoos, her face, and typed out all the relevant information. Just as they were about to post it, the owner of the shop walked in. 

He was on the shorter side, with a grey beard and blue eyes that shown with sadness. They were red rimmed, almost as if he had been crying earlier. “Hey Paige I’m sorry I took so long, I just got back from the hospital where my nephew…” he stopped in his tracks as he eyed Rey. Everyone stood in silence as he examined her face and her tattoos. Rey felt as if time itself were suspended, and she had no idea why. She’d never really met the shop owner. She thinks that she may have seen him in passing when she got her first tattoo. So it was a huge surprise when the man enveloped her in a bear hug. Rey hugged him back, if nothing else he was clearly going through a hard time with his nephew. 

Paige cleared her throat. “Um, Luke?” He pulled back from the hug, realizing how awkward this may have seemed. “This is my sister Rose and her friend Rey. Rey, it seems has a soulmate, who has likely been in an accident. We were trying to find out who gave them the tattoos…

 

“I did,” Luke interjected. He turned to look at Rey who was now hanging on to every word this man was speaking. “I gave your soulmate his tattoos. It’s my nephew. His name is Ben Solo. He was just in an accident, but he should be okay soon. Come with me. I’ll take you to him.” 

At this point Rey finally, finally broke down. She was full on ugly sobbing and she wasn’t entirely sure if they were tears of happiness that she had found him, sadness that he was in fact hurt, stress from the entire situation. It was probably a mix of all three. She felt Rose wrap her arms around her as everyone let her cry it out for a few minutes. 

Once she calmed down and wiped the tears from her eyes, she looked up at Luke. 

“Yes, um, yes I would like that very much. But if it’s not too much trouble, can we stop by the flower shop first?” 

\---------------

It was several hours later when Ben finally came to. His whole body hurt, but there was a much sharper pain that lanced across his face. What the fuck happened? All he remembered was walking through the intersection and , oh shit, the car. He’d been hit by a car. Of fucking course he was sore. When he opened his eyes all he could take in was a dark room, and a steady beeping sound. The hospital. That made sense. As his eyes adjusted he slowly tried to survey his surroundings. It seemed fairly standard, except that there was a large bouquet of sunflowers the table. His heart dropped, surely not, it couldn’t be...could it? He was probably just getting excited over nothing. But when he looked over at the couch, he saw a slim, sleeping form on it. And he knew, he just knew, that it was her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well? 
> 
> I hope that turned out okay. You all have been so amazing I definitely don't want to let you down.  
> Things are still incredibly busy on my end with the move coming up so soon. I will try to post within the next two weeks though! Once we're actually moved I'll be posting on a regular schedule :) 
> 
> [Here](https://open.spotify.com/user/megancrow/playlist/6FDMZrziUGVgkTa3KegtK3?si=d1aUbje5SLyZMybNK7yWUQ) is the spotify playlist I'm making for the fic if you're interested! 
> 
> And [here](https://kylohhh.tumblr.com/post/175035223073/i-couldnt-sleep-last-night-so-i-wrote-this) is the link to the incredible (and heart-wrenching) ficlet @kylohhh wrote based on soulmate/tattoo premise


	5. Caretaker

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> **Notes for the Chapter:**

> I AM SO SORRY FOR TAKING SO LONG!!!!!!!! Mr. H and I moved this summer so he could attend law school. So things have been INSANE. Couple that with a bout of crippling anxiety and well, there you have it, a nearly 3 month break from this story. But, I'm back!!!!! We are all settled in in our new city, and I absolutely love it here. Also a special thank you to the people of the Writing Den and House Flydam for their support. And ESPECIALLY Sage McMae for beta'ing this and making this chapter's moodboard! You all are incredible.

She was here. She had found him. He had no idea how. But...there she was. Softly snoring away on the couch in his hospital room. Ben could do nothing but stare at her. His heart was beating in his chest and _fuck_ it was hard to breathe.

Well. That was probably only a broken rib. Yep. Definitely a broken rib. 

He was brought out of his trance when a nurse came in to check on him. She started rattling off while taking a blood sample and he could not for the life of him pay attention to what she was saying because he kept staring at the woman on the couch. At some point while the nurse was speaking to him, his soulmate woke up. And….and she just looked at him. His heart caught in his throat and when the nurse handed him a pill to take he didn’t even pay attention as he swallowed because all he could concentrate on was her. The nurse left and _shit_ he couldn’t even begin to form a sentence in his head and…. 

“Hi. Um….I’m Rey,” she smiled. 

He cleared his throat and somehow managed to get out. “Ben. Um, my name is Ben Solo. Please forgive me if this is too forward, but Rey,” the name felt right coming out of his mouth, “you are really, really beautiful.” Rey smiled and walked over to his hospital bed, pulling a chair with her. She sat down next to him and for the first time he truly got to look at her. All the same tattoos, and the same... _oh no_. The same scar on her face. How could he have been so careless? He scarred her face forever and...

“Really, it’s fine,” she said. 

“What’s fine?” 

“The scar. It’s quite alright. I don’t mind. I’m just glad you’re okay.” 

Shit, he must have said that aloud. Damn she was pretty. And fuck him his pain meds were starting to kick in. 

Staring at the floor, he tried to start the conversation up again. “Um...so….soulmates?” Fuck with was awkward. Especially since he wasn’t able to think clearly. This was terrible timing. “How in the world did you find me?” Yes. That was a good starting point. Right? 

Rey seemed to light up at that. “It’s kind of a funny story. Obviously it started with this stupid sunflower tattoo.” 

“It’s not stupid.” 

She blushed. Rey then recounted her side of the narrative, sparing no detail. She shared everything with him — from the reasoning behind her first tattoo, to the mac and cheese and wine night she was having when his words appeared on her arm. A girl named Rose and her sister Paige, (that name sounded familiar?) helped her search for him, and then finally, she literally ran into his uncle. 

“It was funny. Your uncle walked into the shop and came up to me to give me a big hug. I thought he only needed some comfort. He looked really upset. I’m just glad, I didn’t have to do the whole social media thing. That would have been...ugh. You know?” 

Aaaaaaand the drugs had officially kicked in. Ben was nodding enthusiastically. And starting to get sleepy. But he couldn’t close his eyes. She was here. And he didn’t want to miss anything. 

“Just go to sleep Ben, I’ll be here when you get up. I promise.” 

“I think...I think I’m going to love you a whole lot.” 

A few hours later, Ben was woken up by the nurse again, but this time for discharge. His heart dropped when he realized Rey was no longer there. Oh shit, did he really say that last night? He must have scared her off. _Fantastic, Solo._

“Now, sweetheart, you’ll need someone to take care of you for a few days. Is there anyone you can call?” 

Ben has honestly no idea. His uncle couldn’t shut down the shop solely to take care of him, and his parents were on the other side of the country (and that’s assuming they even wanted to speak with him). He didn’t trust Hux with his life, even though he was excellent at his work. _Think, Ben, think. Surely there’s someone._

To his relief, Rey walked through the door, holding a cup of coffee. “Oh! You’re awake! I’m so sorry I wasn’t here!” 

“It’s fine, really. I just woke up.” 

“Yes,” said the nurse, “I was about to discharge him. He does need someone to look after him for a few days though.” 

“Oh, that’s no problem at all. I’ll be glad to take care of him!” 

Before Ben knew it, he was in an Uber ride with Rey, headed towards his apartment. Now, this was NOT at all how he imagined he was going to invite her into his home for the first time, but, it wasn’t as if he had much of a choice. The hospital had insisted on a caretaker and Rey had enthusiastically offered up her services. Honestly, he was already half in love with her anyway.

The car came to a stop, and before he could gather himself, Rey was already opening the car door for him and helping him out. She steadied him all the way to the elevator, up to the 17th floor of his high-rise building, and to the end of the hallway, where he resided. 

Rey had somehow already grabbed his keys and opened the door. They were greeted by his dog, Hershey, who seemed to be so overwhelming happy to see his master that he nearly tackled Ben to the ground. 

Then Hershey’s attentions shifted to Rey, who seemed to be delighted by Ben’s animal. The chocolate lab too appeared to like Rey, because, well, he was now licking her face. 

Ben, still a little foggy from the drugs, shouted “Hey buddy! That’s my job!” and then IMMEDIATELY turned a curious shade of pink. 

Rey laughed it off, and helped Ben to his couch. There was a note on the table from his uncle, saying that he had looked after his dog while Ben was in the hospital. Rey took stock of the refrigerator, which had apparently been filled by Luke as well, and then decided to take Hershey on a quick “potty break.” 

Ben laid back on his sofa and tried to catch himself up on all that had happened in the last 72 hours. He had gotten hit by a car, landed himself in the hospital, found his literal soulmate, and now she was here, taking care of him. Everything was so overwhelming and he felt a rising panic attack. But, fuck, with this broken rib it was so hard to breath. And now, now he was panicking because he couldn’t breath. Fucking great. 

The door opened. She was back. _Thank Christ._

“Fuck, I can’t...I can’t breathe.” The room was starting to spin and he felt like an idiot for being in his current state.

“It’s okay, shh, it’s okay Ben. I’ll help you.” 

Somehow...somehow she knew what to do. Rey grabbed a throw pillow from his couch and had him clutch it to his chest. Then, she held his shoulders gently, helping him lean forward. Immediately he felt better.

“Breathe in as deeply as you can, but don’t hurt yourself. I’m right here. I can help take care of you.” At that point she started scratching his back and _fuck_ if he wasn’t already gone for her before, he was now. It had been a long long while since he had known any sort of comforting touch.

“Thank you, I’m honestly not sure what I would have done without you,” Ben chuckled. “How did you know to do the thing with the pillow??? I had,” _wince_ “no idea.” 

Rey, she just kind of looked at the floor for a second, and then, pretending not to have heard him, “We should watch something! It’s not quite time to sleep. Shit, we should probably eat too,” Ben….he didn’t feel quite right about her answer, but decided not to press it. For now, at least. 

In a blur, Rey turned on _Stranger Things_ because “how have you not watched this yet?” and started rummaging through his kitchen until he heard a proud “ah-ha!” come from the pantry. 

“Okay so I found boxed mac & cheese, kielbasa, and microwave steamer veggies. I can go shopping tomorrow, but does that sound okay for tonight?” 

“It sounds...it sounds lovely, Rey.” She beamed. A feeling in his chest began to spread. He didn’t dare name it, at least not yet. 

\-------

“No. No. Absolutely not. You are taking the bed. Ben. You’re...you’re fucking injured! I appreciate the offer, but this is not a time to be gentlemanly. I can sleep on the couch.” 

After dinner, they watched a few hours of _Stranger Things_. Rose had dropped by with an overnight bag for Rey, “OH MY GOODNESS! HE’S SO HANDSOME,” she had attempted to whisper when she saw Ben for the first time. And now, NOW Ben was trying to tell Rey he could sleep on the couch and she could take the bed — that she had done too much and at least deserved a good night’s sleep. _“You helped me to the bathroom for fuck’s sake. At least take the bed.”_ Well, Rey wasn’t having it.

She immediately made him stand from the couch and helped (dragged) him to his bedroom where she deposited him on his oversized bed. After tucking him in (how domestic) and making sure he had water and his last dose of pain medicine, she placed a kiss on his forehead, and turned to leave the room. 

“Rey?” he sounded unsure of himself.

“Yeah?” 

“Stay?” he breathed, “please.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you'd like to listen to the playlist, click [here](https://open.spotify.com/user/megancrow/playlist/6FDMZrziUGVgkTa3KegtK3?si=YZREm77FT4yMxRfMZ-sCAg)
> 
> And if you'd like to say hi on Tumblr, follow me [here](https://justanothersailorscout.tumblr.com/) !


	6. Bloom

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Soundtrack to this chapter is [Bloom by The Paper Kites](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8inJtTG_DuU)
> 
> Thank you so much to [@poaxath](archiveofourown.org/users/Poaxath/pseuds/Poaxath), who beta'd this chapter for me!!! Alright, now where did we leave off?
> 
> ***quick note, Rey discusses some past abuse from Unkar, nothing is very descriptive but I wanted to go ahead and warn you all in case it would be triggering for anyone***

Of course, of course she stayed. It’s what she had wanted to do from the beginning but she didn’t dare ask him for that kind of intimacy so soon. Her last real relationship, well, she had never had a real relationship before. Rey tended to blame it on the other men, but if she was being honest with herself, she had always been afraid of being abandoned, yet again. 

She swallowed. “Yea, um, yes, just let me change out of my jeans?” 

Nervously, Rey walked out of his bedroom and found her overnight bag. Rummaging through it to find pajamas, Rey found... _Jesus Christ, Rose, a black lace teddy?_ She laughed a little at her friend’s antics, and pulled out a pair of sleep shorts and a tank top. Running to the bathroom, Rey changed into her clothes, brushed her teeth and splashed some water on her face. 

To be frank, this wasn’t exactly how she had imagined spending her first night at her soulmate’s house. But, she had never imagined having a soulmate before. And even in the aftermath of Ben’s accident, butterflies still filled her stomach when she looked at him for the first time. He was physically attractive, that much was certain. Ben definitely worked out a lot, and he clearly took care of himself ( _his hair_ ), but the way that he looked at her was, well, it was something truly special. 

Ben Solo looked at Rey Kenobi as if she were his own, personal sun. Yes, she had noticed how his eyes rarely left her when they were together. His movements almost centered around her. No, he did not do a good job of hiding it. But Rey, Rey had never had someone look at her like that. Like she was important. At least, not since Ben and Satine. _How fitting was it that they shared a name?_ And so, without hesitation, Rey had agreed to take care of him. What else would she have done? Said “see you when you get better” and left him alone? Not a fucking chance. 

Entering the bedroom, she found a very sleepy but still awake Ben Solo. 

She raised her eyebrow and laughed. “You should be asleep.” 

“I um, I wanted to wait for you.” Embarrassed, it seemed, to have been caught. 

Rey blushed, thankful that the lights were low so he couldn’t see. 

Acting bolder than she felt, she made her way over to the bed and climbed in, being careful to not to touch him for fear of injuring him further; silently mocking herself for feeling as shy as a middle schooler. 

Staring at the ceiling, she heard him take a shaky breath. “Can you,” he swallowed, “can you just come here?” 

“You sure? I don’t want to hurt you.” 

“Yea, I--I, I just--please?”

Heart beating a tattoo in her chest, and still silently admonishing herself for feeling as nervous as she was to simply cuddle, Rey carefully curled up next to Ben, her head placed gently on his shoulder. As their breath began to sync, she quickly fell asleep, exhausted after the events of the past few days. 

At some point in the night Rey woke up to fingers carding through her hair, with a soft voice murmuring things in her ear like _thank you, I can’t believe you’re mine, I’m going to love you so much, I really hope you don’t wake up because this would be rather embarrassing_. And so, eyes shut tight, she pretended to be asleep by his side. 

The next time Rey woke, it was to the sound of thunder. _Was it supposed to rain today?_ The noise seemed to have alerted Ben, and apparently Hershey, who was now pacing back and forth in the room.

“Hershey will be fine. He always gets this way during storms. He’ll settle down in a minute.” 

Another clap of thunder shook the room, and Rey nearly jumped out of her skin. A concerned look crossed Ben’s face, but before he could say anything, she whispered, “I love the rain, but I’m not the biggest fan of thunder.” 

“It’s okay,” he said softly, “I’ve got you.” 

Rey’s breathing grew shallow as she stared up at his chocolate brown eyes, and then her gaze made its way down to his mouth, and back up again. God, she wanted to kiss him. Ben’s forehead touched her own, and his hand found its way to the back of her neck. She wasn’t sure who moved first, but in a slow collision, their lips touched. 

Kissing Ben felt like home. His lips moved against hers slowly, but with purpose. There was so much weight behind it that Rey could feel the pinpricks of tears forming in her eyes. This was comfort, belonging, and a feeling she recognized but wasn’t entirely ready to come to terms with yet. 

Pulling back, she barely heard him whisper, “Where have you been?” 

“Not getting tattoos soon enough, apparently.” 

At that he broke out in laughter, which suited his face quite well, until his expression turned into a grimace. _Right. Fuck. A broken rib_. Just like earlier she gave him a pillow, helped him sit up and lean forward, and rubbed his back. _This is not the time for admiring his back muscles, Kenobi, get it together._ Once the pain subsided, Ben looked at her with concern. “I asked you earlier, but, I don’t know. Maybe I’m overstepping my bounds here, but how did you know what to do for a broken rib?” 

“The nurse told me,” she retorted quickly. 

He gaze got more intense, “Rey.” 

She couldn’t handle the heat of his stare any longer. “It’s not a happy story. I don’t want you to think less of me.” At that he pulled her close, groaning at the effort it caused him. Rey took a deep breath, and began. “When I was 5 years old my parents abandoned me on the front porch of a house a few streets down from where I grew up.” His grip on her grew tighter. “They told me they were coming back, so I waited. But, clearly chasing their next high was more important. Satine and Ben Kenobi found me, and took me in. They were absolutely wonderful, until I was 10, and they were in a car accident. I was placed into the foster system, and my caretaker’s name was Unkar Plutt. Well, I don’t know if you would exactly call him a caretaker. It doesn’t matter. Anyway, he withheld food sometimes, forced me to work in the scrapyard, things like that. It’s why my hands are all scarred up. One day, I think I was around 16, he had a little too much to drink when he had an outburst, and I was standing too close. I was alone, and couldn’t go to the hospital. I had to Google it,” Rey fought back tears at the memory. “But I got out. Which is more than most people can say, so I consider myself lucky.” 

\------------

Ben Solo spent the rest of the day making sure he was as close to Rey as possible, while also not trying to appear clingy and creepy. He was angry. Angry at her parents for abandoning her. Angry at the universe for giving her amazing guardians and then ripping them away. Angry at whomever placed Rey in Plutt’s care. Thankful, so very very thankful, that she was here, and that she was with him. As he pondered the story she told him, one name stuck out. Ben Kenobi. That was, _oh shit_. He was going to have to call Luke about that. And worse yet, his mother.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, well, well, look who's back with another excuse for a delay in this fic. It's me! What's up everyone? To everyone who has commented, given kudos, made moodboards, etc, your support has meant the WORLD to me. It's legitimately what keeps me writing this fic, even when life decides to get in the way for months at a time. You all are AMAZING. Thank you so much for waiting, really. 
> 
> If you'd like to listen to the playlist, click [here](https://open.spotify.com/user/megancrow/playlist/6FDMZrziUGVgkTa3KegtK3?si=uZK8uGkbQ_qNbqhdr6qrzQ)
> 
> And if you'd like to say hi on Tumblr, follow me [here](https://justanothersailorscout.tumblr.com/)!


	7. Reconciliation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ben calls Leia, and then Ben meets Rose!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this took a LOT out of me to write. Being in Ben's headspace was a little exhausting. He does have a minor panic attack in this chapter, but before it gets too bad he's interrupted by Rose :) They don't get enough interaction, so I made it happen. Well, you guys have waited long enough! Enjoy! 
> 
> (For those of you that need a recap, last chapter was bed sharing, snuggling, first kisses, and Rey's backstory. Ben recognizes the Kenobi name, and realizes he will have to call him mother.)

When Ben Solo was 18, he had long considered himself incapable of love. His parents surely didn’t love him, because if they had they would have been around more. Girls didn’t like him, he was too tall and gangly and his ears stuck out. He didn’t - _couldn't_ \- connect with anyone. So, he cut off all connections after he graduated college and tried to make his own path doing what he loved. And if there is one thing that he loved, it was books. Ben Solo loved books. He wanted to write stories for people, take them on adventures and make them feel things that he was apparently incapable of feeling himself. He had outlines and prompts and half-written stories on his laptop, but in the meantime, he still needed to eat. So he started working for Snoke at the young age of 22 and worked his way up to Vice President of his publishing company by 28. And his mental state had never been worse. He was...lonely. He wanted someone, just one person, to care about him. Maybe he should give his parents a call. It would be nice to hear their voices. But he was too proud, so he threw himself into his work. Leaving his own manuscripts in that long untouched folder on his laptop. One day after work, he found his way to the animal shelter and there was chocolate lab about 2 years old, given up by a family that just no longer wanted him. Well, he suppose he knew the feeling. 

*

It’d been 3 days and Rey had to go back to school during the day. But she promised to be back that evening. It’d been less than a fucking week, and he loved her. So, so much. The thought was overwhelming, as he hadn’t ever hoped for something like that for him before. He couldn’t tell her yet, although he suspected that she knew. He couldn’t not be around her, move with her. Over the past three days, there were a few more stolen kisses, a few more confessions. He told her about his family. And fuck did he feel selfish. She had grown up abandoned on a doorstep, and he had the nerve to complain to her that his dad was away a lot and that his mom left him to a nanny most of the time. 

Fuck.

But she was there, the whole time, and didn’t look at him with the disgust that he was sure was coming his way. No, she stayed there, and listened. She even played with his hair while he talked. She really seemed to like doing that. Most importantly, she made him feel less alone. Over the past few days she continued to care for him. Cooked some of the meals, walked his dog, hell, she even helped him catch up on laundry. 

He needed to take her on a proper date. It would be his luck, to realize he had a soulmate and _then get hit by a fucking car_. Maybe he should be thankful that his accident spurred on their meeting, but he really wished he could hold her properly. He didn’t even want to think about work. He made good money as a publicist. He did, and even more from his grandfather’s inheritance, but his boss worked him to the bone and if he was being frank, he didn’t want to publish other people’s work. He wanted to write. He had so many stories in his head that had never made it past an outline format because of work obligations. 

And then there was the issue of that pesky last name, Kenobi. He wasn’t sure how he didn’t put it together in the first place. 

Ben stared at his cell phone with his finger over the name ‘Mom’. Maybe...maybe he should wait. _No, no no no._ He was done waiting. His heart was beating out of his chest and he nearly hung up because he was absolutely about to throw up when his mom answered the phone. 

“Ben?” her voice was timid, astonished. He did this. _Fuck,_ he did this. 

“Hey mom.” 

Her heard her voice hitch. _Shit._ This was so much harder than he thought it was going to be.

“It’s-” she sniffed, “it’s so good to hear from you. How are you doing?” 

“So I’m guessing you haven’t been in touch with Luke much?” 

“Luke? You’ve heard from Luke?” 

_Damn._

“Mom,” his voice broke, “something’s happened.” 

And suddenly he was a child again, seeking his mother’s comfort. Everything, _everything_ that had happened to him he told her about. Snoke, his dog, reuniting with Luke, the tattoos he now bore - _and what the actual hell, were these tears?_ \- the car accident..

“YOU GOT HIT BY A CAR AND NO ONE BOTHERED TO TELL ME?!” 

“Well to be fair, I was in the hospital on pain medication...I figured Luke would have told you.” 

“No, he didn’t. And he will be getting an earful later. Do you have someone to take care of you? I can try to get there today if you need me to. Ben you should have told me! I can’t believe no one told me! You got hit by a fucking car AND I AM THE LAST PERSON TO FIND OUT!” 

“Yea. Um. Mom? The tattoos,” he chuckled, “you know what that means, right?”

Leia immediately stopped her barrage of words and gasped. 

“What’s their name?” 

“Her name is Rey. It’s how, well it’s how we met. She was getting tattoos at Luke’s shop and then she came in with the scar running down her face and I guess he brought her to the hospital. But- She’s stayed over the past few days. She’s an engineering major and, Mom, she is just...so...I can’t even describe it. But her last name is Kenobi. I was wondering if there was any connection to-” he stopped talking with he heard her start crying. 

“Mom?”

“I’m so sorry honey. I’m so so sorry. I thought, I thought you were gone for the longest time, and I stopped trying to reach out and now you have a person and I’m just so happy for you …” 

“It’s okay. Really.” As much as he was glad to have started reconciling with his parents, it was going to be a process letting them back into his life. 

“So. Rey. When do we get to meet her?” 

“Mom!” 

“No rush! But, Ben it’s been so long since I’ve seen you happy. I’m just excited. As for Kenobi, I’ll look into it.” 

“She said she was raised by a couple named Ben and Satine. It HAS to be them. Mom, her parents abandoned her on their doorstep. But, maybe we can get her some stories about Ben and Grandfather? I don’t know. I just want to do something. She has no one and I feel awful.” 

“Ben. She has _you!_ For heaven’s sakes you are just as clueless as your father sometimes. But yes I will go try to dig up some pictures and stories for her.” 

“Thanks Mom.” 

“Anytime. Can I call again in a few days? Just to check up on you?” 

He smiled in spite of himself. “Yea, of course. I’ll talk to you then?” 

“Bye son. We love you very much.” 

“Love you too,” and then they hung up. 

_That was...well, that wasn’t that bad._ He still felt like he was going to throw up, but maybe mending fences with his family wouldn’t be as bad as he thought. His heart was beating rapidly. As nice as she was to him, it still didn’t relieve the feelings of anxiety at the thought of seeing them again. Especially Han, _fuck._

His thoughts began to spiral from there. He had a family. They weren’t perfect, but he hadn’t talked to them in ten years. Ten years. Sure, they had never really been there for him, but his Rey had been left on a fucking doorstep. And _fuck_ what was he thinking? He was so selfish. Rey. Rey Rey Rey Rey Rey. He would never be good enough for her. This was... this was too much. He began to panic and it was still hard to breath and then….the doorbell rang. Maybe it was her. 

He made his way to the door, slowly, only to find a tiny Asian woman standing there. Puzzled, he couldn’t speak before she...

“HI, YOU MUST BE REY’S SOULMATE! I AM SO EXCITED TO MEET YOU!” She grinned from ear to ear and made her way inside. 

“Um….hi. Yea, come in I suppose.” Shaking himself out of his earlier panic, he was slightly baffled at the brazenness of the young women, but he welcomed the distraction. 

“Wow, nice place. I’m Rose, by the way.” She turned around and stuck her hand out to shake his hand. Baffled, he shook her hand, still slightly in a daze. “Rey had a meeting with her senior design group after class and asked me to come over to check on you.” 

“I’m fine, really. It’s okay. You didn’t need to come all the way over here,” he was shocked, absolutely shocked that Rey would think to do that for him, but he knew he shouldn’t be. 

“It’s okay! Rey told me there was a super cute dog that needed a good walk!” Just then, Hershey rounded the corner and jumped up on Rose to lick her face and say hi. “Oh, who’s a good boy? Who’s a good boy?!” 

The sight was….interesting. Ben Solo didn’t have friends. He certainly didn’t have anyone close enough to come check up on him. “I… would you like something to drink? I’m sorry. I usually don’t have people over,” He attempted to walk over to the kitchen. 

“Ben, it’s okay. I can get it. Really. Sit down.” 

Rose helped Ben sit down comfortably on his couch, and ran over to the fridge to grab two beers and sat down next to him. Taking a swig out of her bottle, she looked him up and down. “You know, I don’t know what you’ve done to Rey, but she’s the happiest I’ve ever seen her. And I suppose I have you to thank for that. I’ve known her since freshman year and that girl has been through so much to get to where she is and I just… I’ve literally never seen her happier.” 

Relief washed over him. He couldn’t explain it. She was… _happy._ With _him._ Pride bubbled up in his chest.

Rose took Hershey out on a walk, and he tried to straighten up his living room as much as he could, even though he wasn’t super mobile yet. He looked at his desk, and there was his laptop. He went over to it, and stared at the folder he had neglected for years now. The one with all the stories he couldn’t quite finish, or the ones that didn’t make it out of the outline format. But there was one. One story that he had thought up a while ago that stuck out in his mind. It was about a girl. She grew up in the slums, and unwillingly ended up on a grand adventure only to run into a misunderstood prince whose love for her could burn down galaxies. 

Rose came back, interrupting his train of thought. The had a lovely afternoon together. She even beat him at chess. And they discussed Rey’s birthday, which was apparently next month. Well, it wasn’t her actual birthday. No one knew that date. But it was the day that Satine and Ben found her on their doorstep, which is what really mattered according to Rey. The thought made tears sting the back of his eyes. _God, when had he become so soft?_

“I love her,” he blurted it out, the words taking him back. That was the first time he had said that aloud. 

She just smiled, “I know.” 

Rose left shortly after that. About an hour later, Rey showed up at his door. Her hair was in three buns, the ends of it sticking out like she had had a long day. She was wearing sweatpants, torn up sneakers, and a beat up, brown leather jacket. She smelled of winter air and jasmine. She had never looked more beautiful. Without even saying hello, he pulled her into his arms to kiss her silly. Rey was so soft, and he couldn’t handle the emotions that were swirling around in his head. They pulled back from each other and hazel met brown. 

“What was that for?” she smiled up at him. 

“I just missed you.” 

That evening, she spread her homework out all over his floor, biting on her pencil in that adorable way when she was concentrating especially hard on something. 

While she was working, he went over to his desk to grab his laptop. Plopping down on the couch, he opened up that folder. And for the first time in years, he began to write.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am not 100% happy with the chapter, but I felt like I made you all wait long enough. So for those of you that are still reading this THANK YOU so much for sticking with me. I'm hoping we can change the rating in the next chapter or two :D 
> 
> Thank you so much to Atchamberlin for beta-ing this SO fast.

**Author's Note:**

> Comments and Kudos are like water on Jakku. Let me know what you think? 
> 
> Come say hi on Tumblr!!!! [https://justanothersailorscout.tumblr.com/](url)
> 
>   [Buy Me a Coffee?](https://ko-fi.com/W7W5PFXR)

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [Permanent Ink](https://archiveofourown.org/works/15188507) by [Kylohhh](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kylohhh/pseuds/Kylohhh)




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